Advanced Technology Attachment (“ATA”) is an interface standard for electronic data storage devices, whereby a controller is integrated on a device itself and serves as a communication interface between the device and a motherboard. Parallel ATA (“PATA”) and Serial ATA (“SATA”) are two subsequent interface standards developed from early ATA technology. However, the PATA interface has a limited transmission bandwidth, and is inadequate for modern applications using central processing units (“CPU”) with higher processing speeds. The SATA interface has largely replaced PATA as the interface of choice, because it features higher transmission efficiency, among other advantages.
A conventional SATA connector is shown in FIG. 1. The interface of a conventional SATA connector generally includes one end disposed on a hard drive 10 while another end is generally disposed on a printed circuit board (PCB) 11. This connecting method is generally completed by engaging the hard drive 10 and the PCB 11 in a horizontal direction 12. Such an mating arrangement usually requires a fixed-size receiving space 13 to provide the hard drive 10 with some leeway in movement during insertion, and also to prevent the hard drive 10 from colliding with other members 14 during insertion. Although the fixed-size receiving space 13 is necessary, it is not space efficient. Moreover, the horizontal direction 12 of force required for mating of the hard drive is not a natural direction in which a user exerts force, thus hindering the efficiency of insertion or removal of the hard drive.
Another exemplary prior art SATA connector is illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B. As shown, one end of the conventional SATA connector is disposed on a hard drive 20 while another end thereof is disposed on a PCB 21. This SATA connector is different from FIG. 1's conventional SATA connector, in that an adaptor 201 is arranged at the end of its interface and disposed on the hard drive 20. The corresponding end of the interface disposed on the PCB 21 is rotated upwards 90 degrees so that the two corresponding ends of the interface are engaged along a vertical direction 22. However, this mating arrangement requires an additional adaptor 201, which adds additional manufacturing costs as well as additional complexity.
Moreover, Taiwan Utility Model Patents No. M346145, M353509, M376971, and M385131 disclose technical features relevant to the guiding portions of the connectors; Taiwan Utility Model Patent No. M278110 discloses technical features relevant to the positioning post of a connector; Taiwan Utility Model Patent No. M315421 discloses technical features relevant to the complementary track of a connector. However, the aforementioned features are not desirable in practice.
Therefore, a need exists in the art for a connector with a guiding portion that is capable of improving the aforementioned prior art detects, efficiently utilizing a smaller receiving space to tightly mate a SATA connector.